31 March 2012

Selangor Umno deputy chief Noh Omar is
confident that BN will recapture the state in the next general election
by winning 36 out of 56 seats, a seat short of a two-thirds majority in
the state assembly.

In an interview with Chinese dailies reported yesterday in Nanyang Siang Pau,
the agriculture and agro-based industry minister expects Umno to win
over 30 seats from the 35 it will contest, MCA to capture five out of
14, MIC and Gerakan to grab one each out of three and four seats to be
contested respectively.

Selangor
BN's target in the 13th general election, said Noh, is to win back
Selangor with a simple majority, adding that a two-thirds majority would
be a "bonus".

Noh said response to BN’s activities shortly after the last general
election was lukewarm, but claims the situation has changed under the
leadership of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, who is also Umno and BN
state chief.

This, he said, was evident from BN having to hire more buses to ferry
people to their events - the the past five buses would go out and come
back empty, but today five would not be enough.

He also boasted that if they prepare 10,000 chairs for their events more
than 20,000 people would show up, taking this as a sign that Selangor
residents were interested in BN otherwise they would not come.

Asked whether such a trend would translate into votes, Noh replied, "Hopefully."

Parliamentary seat haul

At the parliamentary level, Noh was also confident that BN can grab 12 out of 22 Selangor parliamentary seats.He
predicts Umno can win seven out of 10 contested, MCA can capture three
out of seven while MIC can win at least two out of four.

"It seems that MCA can retain Pandan," he added.

Meanwhile, he left the question of his own candidacy to Najib's decision.

"My promise is to try my best help Umno win, but who will be the menteri besar is not my job (to ask)," he said.

Anonymous - #28963511 Of course, they're upbeat about it. They've planted and moved so many phantom voters to selangor. so they're smug about it now

Fair Play - At best, Noh Omar is counting the chickens before they are hatched.

Nicholas Philip - They need to provide bus to bring ppl for their events shows how desperate have BN become.

rayfire - Good, have the confidence and spend more and
more money in Selangor, heck that the whole bag of money and dump it
from house to house! You can spend all you want! You will not earn our
nambikkai or tembikai for that matter!

malaysian2020 - dont be so humble Mr noh omar,just say BN can will all the 57 seat it contested...opps sorry all the 56 seats

anon-23 - Seriously, if umno wins in selangor, the jewel
state of the country is finished. It will be governed by a bunch of
nincompoops whose priority would be to enrich themselves. All the
hardwork and money saved by Pakatan will but come to nought. That bn
might win remains a possibility with the help of the EC and its people
who will rig the polls.

Let BN politicians be reminded that they should stop blaming the rakyat if they find themselves down the slippery slide of popularity.

They should also stop blaming their diminishing chances of landslide victories in the coming general elections on the demographics. Likewise, they should also stop blaming their coalition counterparts for failures and for losing territories to the Opposition coalition.

BN's precarious sitz-im-laben has nothing to do with race and religion either. And the mother of all their contentions - that Anwar Ibrahim, is the primary cause of their loosening ground is also not the problem.

It was Dr M who killed Umno, not Anwar

The core cancer that is eating into BN today is the fact that they were deprived of true leadership by their chief architect Tun Dr Mahathir. Remember, he sacked not one potential successor but far too many.

BN must not forget that the Tun not only flushed out potential talents but also did massive surgeries on UMNO and subsequently setting in irreversible serious, secondary infections.

Let us remember the pages of history. The nation had Musa Hitam, a man who made it into the TIME's pages as an Asian promise. Then came Anwar Ibrahim who was also sacked from BN. Remember the potential stars of Semangat 47? All were thrown out into the cold and so also went Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah right up to this day.

Then BN pushed Pak Lah to the frontier only to see BN itself have him replaced by Datuk Seri Najib. But even before Najib could warm his high chair, the Altantuya saga brought the roof caving in for BN.

Today, can anyone be chided for telling and perceiving that there are no charismatic leaders within the BN fold? We need a personality, a voice, a beacon of hope

The populace needs a personality. The voters need a voice. The citizens need a beacon of admiration and hope.

Do we have one single personality within BN who can stand tall and command the respect, support and undivided loyalty - someone whom the rakyat can agree hands-down as the person who can put the country on track?

Do we have one single voice within BN who can speak in the best interest of all Malaysians, the nation and its Rulers without marginalising anyone - rich or poor; Malays, Chinese, Indian, Sabahan or Sarawakian; Muslim or non-Muslim?

Do we have one single beacon of admiration and hope within BN who can stand tall and untainted with allegations and corruption or living a lifestyle that is exemplary for and proudly recognized by all Malaysians?

Like it or not, the people accept Anwar as a leader

If you look at the Opposition coalition, they are not free of allegations. But what is very clear is that they are able to put aside their differences in political ideologies and visions of their future and rise to push for the people's interest first.

The Opposition camp has been able to quickly identify its leader and put their weight behind him despite all the allegations about this man's personal lifestyle preferences.

And whether we like it or not, whether Tun Dr Mahathir likes it or not, Anwar Ibrahim is being recognised as a leader not only by the coalition camp but also by all their respective supporters and members.

In fact, much as BN may denounce, even the corporate corridors, individuals from the global business arena, leaders in other countries, and maverick politicians are in alignment with the very positioning of Anwar ibrahim by the Pakatan Rakyat forces.

Is there anyone in BN who can do what DSAI has achieved, namely to reign in the opposition parties and have them anoint him as their forefront leader?

Internal cancer

So BN is not fighting a political war today. It is actually suffering from a depletion of its marrow, i.e. lack of leadership.

And who do we blame for BN going bankrupt in leadership after fifty years of getting full support from the rakyat? Blame the rakyat still? Or blame the Opposition? Or find a scapegoat in the person of Anwar Ibrahim?

The rakyat gave BN every opportunity every five years, seasons in seasons out, to lead them and the nation. But today BN is fighting for its life to win with a landslide victory of bygone eras.- Malaysia Chronicle

The government had dispensed RM608.68 million over a period of 12 weeks
to meet the expenses of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and his deputy
Muhyiddin Yassin's official nationwide visits.

According
to a parliamentary written reply, the "urgent allocation" approved from
January to March 15 was disbursed during their 14-state visit, with
Perak recording the highest at RM220.38 million.

Jerai PAS MP Mohd Firdaus Jaafar, on March 27, had asked the Prime
Minister's Department to list to all the immediately allocations
approved for the prime minister's official tour of the states.

Allocations for Johor ranked second, with RM201.40 million doled out
for 24 projects, while the Federal Territories came in third with
RM63.25 million dispensed for nine projects.

Najib’s recent marathon forays to Perak and Selangor focussed on
opposition-held areas, distributing goodies and promises to boost BN’s
popularity, had fuelled speculation that polls might be announced soon.

BN suffered its worst electoral defeat in 2008 under former prime
minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, when the opposition won 82 parliamentary
seats and gained control of Kelantan, Kedah and Penang, as well as
Perak and Selangor.

The ruling coalition, however, wrested away Perak in February 2009 -
after three Pakatan Rakyat assemblypersons defected, mere days after
Najib took over as state Umno chief, plunging the state into political
chaos which lasted several months.

Political pundits opined that the 13th general election will pose a
critical challenge to the first-time premier to reverse inroads made by
the opposition in Parliament and to win much needed votes in Perak and
Selangor, a fate analysts believe, still hangs by a thread.- malaysiakini

Pakatan Rakyat is making preparations to replace parliamentary Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim (pic), according to PAS secretary general Mustafa Ali.

However, Mustafa said the candidate they have in mind will have to take over after the coming polls, and he is none other than prime minister Najib Razak.

“After the 13th general election, we would like to replace Anwar Ibrahim with Najib Razak or Muhyiddin Yasin," quipped the veteran PAS leader, responding to questions by reporters on the calls by pro-Barisan Nasional leaders to impeach Anwar based on allegations of sexual misconduct.

The impeachment process was announced yesterday by Anwar's former friend-turned-nemesis-turned-senator S.Nallakaruppan, and UMNO lawyer Shafee Abdullah.

However, the duo was given a lesson on parliamentary procedures by rights lawyer and PKR vice president N Surendran, who said their action smacked of "breathtaking ignorance of impeachment and parliamentary procedure in Malaysia and the Commonwealth".

Surendran pointed out the absence of any provision or precedent for impeachment in the Malaysian parliament.

"In England, the procedure was last used over two hundred years ago in Lord Melville's case and is now obsolete. The rationale of the impeachment remedy was to hold Ministers and the Executive accountable in the administration of the country.

"To suggest that it be used against the Opposition leader shows a gross misunderstanding of the impeachment process. With the evolution of the motion of no confidence, select committees and close parliamentary scrutiny and questioning, the old impeachment mechanism has become archaic," said Surendran in a statement to Harakahdaily.

PKR has documentary evidence to prove that
the Malaysian government had sought Israel’s support and vote for it to
host the World Gas Conference scheduled to be held on June 4-8.

The party’s secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution Ismail (left) said he has obtained reports, letters and other documents as proof of Umno’s hypocrisy over its ties with Israel.

“The conference gathers major oil and gas companies from all over the world.

"The organisation of the conference is based on vote by members of
the International Gas Union (IGU) which includes Malaysia, Russia,
Israel, Brunei, Indonesia and some others.

“The government had lobbied to hold the conference and sought Israel’s help to support Malaysia’s candidacy as host.

“Malaysia also indirectly offered to manage the registration and
accommodation of Israeli representatives who attended the 2005 IGU
Conference in Tianjin, China,” Saifuddin told the media in parliament
house today.

He
said the manner taken to seek Israel’s help and blessings, and also to
seek Wisma Putra’s advise towards the organising of the event by the
Malaysian Gas Association (MGA), which represents Petronas, and former
premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad as advisor, is questionable.

Saifuddin claimed PKR has evidence of Mahathir’s and Wisma Putra’s
blessings for the MGA to appeal for Israel’s support towards getting the
rights to organise the triennial conference.

The PKR secretary-general also showed a letter written by a Malaysian
representative to his Israeli counterpart, which verifies that Wisma
Putra had approved the approach used for Malaysia to seek Israel’s
support.

Evidence of Umno's hyprocrisy

“Umno leaders’ attitude in determining Wisma Putra’s policy is
against the desire of Malaysians who do not want any diplomatic
relations with Israel.

“This expose proves Umno leadership’s hypocrisy on issues pertaining to
ties with Israel as it shows they want to establish diplomatic ties, and
also proves that they are willing to bow down to get Israel’s support.

“PKR urges Wisma Putra and Mahathir to state their stand on allowing the
organisers to appeal for help from Israel as this is against the
solidarity of Malaysians in supporting the Palestinian cause,” said
Saifuddin.

For the past few weeks Umno and its media have been attacking Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim over his Wall Street Journal interview claiming that the Permatang Pauh MP supported the Israeli cause.

Anwar, however, claimed that the mainstream media had taken the report and his statement out of context.

Foreign Minister Anifah Aman had also said that Malaysia does not have ties with Israel.-malaysiakini

Ng Yuen Chan has occupied the same room for 20 years, so the retiree was
surprised to learn recently that he had two Indian Malaysian women as
roommates.
They were phantom voters registered at his home in Seremban, capital of
Negri Sembilan, a key political battleground state and one of many such
cases fueling fear of possible fraud in coming elections in the
multi-racial country.

"The government should take action. These people don't exist here," Ng said angrily.

Opposition election workers and independent vote-reform advocates say a
rash of irregularities could tip the balance in what may be a tight
contest between the long-ruling BN coalition and an upstart opposition. Campaigners
warn that if the government does not address the issue, they could take
to the streets again as they did in a protest by tens of thousands last
year that was crushed by police.

"I certainly think the playing field is still very skewed. It could cost the opposition the win," said Ambiga Sreenivasan (right), co-chair of electoral reform group Bersih 2.0.

"If they (the government) don't commit to reform before the... election, there will be a Bersih 3.0 rally."

Bersih 2.0 and other critics allege the coalition, despite promising
reform, is illegally registering non-resident supporters in shaky
constituencies or those held by opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's
three-party alliance.
In one case near Ng's house, more than 60 people were registered living
in two apartment blocks that do not even exist, say opposition activists
who have been scouring quarterly voter rolls compiled by the Election
Commission.

The government denies a fraud campaign, and the commission says it is cleaning voter rolls. Late last year it purged more than 40,000 names that could not be
accounted for, but the revelation only added to fears of widespread
irregularities.

The commission also recently fired hundreds of staff after it was found
they were responsible for registering voters twice, adding non-citizens,
and other "negligence," government-controlled media reported.Electoral roll a fundamental issue

Anthony Loke (right),
an opposition parliamentarian representing Ng's district, said a report
by a government-appointed organisation found some 80,000 people were
registered in just over 300 addresses, among other discrepancies.

"The most fundamental issue is the electoral roll. It must be cleaned
up," he said. "If they don't clean up the roll, other changes are not as
significant."

Bersih 2.0 and opposition parties led a rally in Kuala Lumpur last July
to demand clean elections - ‘Bersih’ means clean - and were met by tear
gas and water cannon. Some 1,600 people were arrested.

The rally gave voice to widespread suspicions documented in many cases
over the years that the ruling coalition has routinely used fraud,
vote-buying and a stranglehold on traditional media to stay in power.Stung
by condemnation over the rally crackdown, Prime Minister Najib Razak
set up a bi-partisan parliamentary panel in October to study possible
reforms. A final report is due on Monday.

An interim report suggested measures including introducing indelible ink
to prevent multiple voting, which the Election Commission has pledged
to do.

"The main (recommendations) are all accepted and done already. Now we
are busy doing the preparations," commission deputy chairperson Wan
Ahmad Wan Omar told AFP.

But critics accuse the government of dragging its feet on far-reaching
reform and ignoring calls to halt abuses like alleged vote-buying and
preventing fair access to media.New report on irregularities

Concern has sharpened recently amid heavy speculation that the polls - due by next April - could be called within months.

"You can't expect BN to implement (all the) reforms for a system that
has benefitted them for years," said Loke, also a member of the
parliamentary reform panel.

Bersih 2.0 has calculated the BN coalition won a parliamentary majority by only 27,000 votes.

Leading
polling firm Merdeka Centre, along with another institute that monitors
the electoral process, will launch a new report on such irregularities
on Friday.Ibrahim Suffian (left), head of the centre, said its research has found an "abnormal increase of voters" in closely contested constituencies.

"So it would affect the outcome of the election" in some areas, he said.-malaysiakini

There is no need to worry over the
possibility of foreigners being registered as voters or cases of dubious
voters, as they must produce their MyKad to register or vote.

"No foreign citizen can be registered as a voter, as the identity card (MyKad) must be used in the registration process.

"As for dubious voters, they still need to produce an IC to vote. If
they cannot do so, they cannot vote," Minister in the Prime Minister's
Department Nazri Aziz (right) told the Dewan Rakyat today.

He said this when winding up for the PM's Department in the debate on the royal address.As such, Nazri said, foreigners or voters of dubious origin would not
be able to vote as by right none of them would be able to produce a
MyKad.

Nazri explained that this was in accordance to Article 119 of the constitution, which allows only Malaysians to vote.

“There are 33 levels of checks via the the ALIS system, which links
agencies to the National Registration Department, and the system will
reject voter registrations from those who are not citizens,” argued the
minister.

He was responding to concerns raised by opposition MPs while debating the royal address.

Electoral system in ruling government's favour

Cases of foreigners allegedly registered as voters and of 42,000
dubious voters with incomplete information that the Election Commission
itself admitted to have been opposition fodder to push for electoral
reforms in a system they claim has been weighted to favour the ruling
government.Nazri
also brushed aside the call by Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Ipoh Timor) for a
special committee to ensure fair elections, saying that the
parliamentary select committee (PSC) for electoral reform is already
doing the job.

When Lim stood up to press the issue, arguing that the issue was the
lack of transparency in the current system, not just the technicalities
handled by the PSC, Nazri hit back at him.

“This is like what a Year Six student would say... Not what I would expect from a veteran parliamentarian like you.

“Why would you say something stupid like that? You were an MP when I was still in school,” sniped the minister.

As Nazri continued his winding-up, more opposition MPs stood up to refer
to issues concerning irregularities in the electoral system.

Special meeting with EC proposed

Saying that he did not have answers to the issues as they were either
new matters not raised during the debate or something that only the EC
could answer, Nazri then proposed a special meeting to address those
concerns.

“Since all the MPs are here, I suggest that we meet with the EC in the
coming weeks, maybe on the 16th of next month, and I shall be there
myself, so that the commission can answer.“If possible, we can give advance notice so they can come prepared with answers,” offered Nazri.

The opposition MPs agreed and said that they looked forward to the meeting.- malaysiakini

AngryBird - I do not know whether Nazri is bodoh, bangang
or bahlul. Many foreigners in Sabah have acquired blue MYCARDS. How
the hell they got this document? Don't pretend you are not aware of
this, as your bloody stinking BN/UMNO parties are behind the issuance of
blue Mycards. With Mycards, these foreigners have been registered as
voters.

wira - Nazri. The point is anyone with a MyKad can vote
if he is registered. UMNO is giving easy registration to hundreds of
thousands of new MyKad owners just to ensure their survival at the
detriment of the country. You are mischievous not to address to that
point..

Kgen - Nazri is ignorant or playing stupid. There are lot's of foreigners with MyKad walking around like instant citizens.

JBGUY - He is such a nincompoop. Nazri should know by now
that there are huge numbers of foreigners being given ICs on the
premise that their new found citizenship would be forfeited if they
don't vote for UMNO. The Electoral Roll is also filled with dead and
phantom voters. An independent audit firm should be given the task of
cleaning up the electoral rolls and they should be given adequate time
to do so.

Lt Cdr.B.RMK - Well said GovPayMaster! Nazri is teaching
us how to suck eggs. An estimated number of more than 3 million
foreigners, especially, Indons are already bumiputras of this country,
of course with blue ICs. And yet he got the audacity to say foreigners
can't vote. He must the first one to be 'guillotined.'

Pakatan Rakyat (PR) will go into upcoming polls fighting a class war on behalf of the lower classes whom Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said were being held at the mercy of Barisan Nasional (BN) cronies.

The opposition leader told a crowd of more than 2,000 at a ceramah in Ampang, a former Umno stronghold, that PR was facing attacks in BN-controlled media because cronies of the ruling coalition feared cuts into their “obscene profits” if there was a change in government.

“This battle, this election is about the masses, the workers, the low-income earners against the rich cronies of Umno,” he said.

“Every day I am attacked. Who is fighting me? Not Najib or Muhyiddin. It is the tycoons who fear their profits will be cut,” the former deputy prime minister said, referring to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his deputy Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

Although he accused several Malaysian billionaires such as those who controlled the Genting and YTL groups, he zeroed in on tycoon Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar al-Bukhary’s monopoly of the sugar and rice market.

“Am I glad Malays control certain facets of the economy? Yes, but not to burden others,” the PKR de facto leader said.

“Under Syed Mokhtar, sugar prices are four times higher. You who support Umno, your family members in the paddy fields are being squeezed by your leaders.”

Anwar’s plea to voters comes after a survey conducted last month by independent pollsters Merdeka Center found that Najib’s popularity had surged by 10 percentage points to 69 per cent largely on the back of 78 per cent support from households earning under RM1,500 a month.

The centre credited this largely to Putrajaya’s RM500 cash handout to households with a monthly income of under RM3,000 under the Bantuan Rakyat 1 Malaysia programme.

Najib’s predecessor Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s approval rating was 71 per cent before the 2008 polls but BN lost its two-thirds parliamentary majority and four state governments.

Anwar also pointed out to the crowd last night that it was PR that fought for minimum wage and the abolition of the Higher Education Fund (PTPTN), which he said “burdened poor Malays and made them beggars”.

“These young Malays earning less than RM800 a month who are supporting Umno... it is not Umno that is fighting for minimum wage, it is us. We want to cancel PTPTN, not Umno.

“We want to reduce fuel, electricity prices. But Umno says giving free water like Selangor will make the government bankrupt,” Anwar added, referring to the PKR-led administration’s subsidy of the 20 cubic metres of water to each household in the Klang Valley.

Najib has indicated that elections are near although his government’s mandate expires only next year.- The Malaysian Insider

MACC must investigate Nazri Porsche and luxury MPV: Spending money like water

I refer to the refusal of de-facto Law Minister Nazri Abdul Aziz to declare the source of funds for the Porsche and luxury MPV used by his son Nedim in an assault incident on March 20.

In a statement on March 27, he attempted to ' wash his hands' off the matter by saying that he is not responsible for his son's conduct, but remained silent about the luxury vehicles.

Umno ministers including Najib spending money like water.

The Malaysian public is entitled to know how a Minister on government salary is able to afford such a lavish lifestyle for himself and his family. While the public are suffering from low wages and rising prices, BN leaders and their families have accumulated enormous wealth by virtue of their government positions and political influence.

A stark example is Umno Minister Shahrizat Jalil's family, who purchased luxury condos, cars and made overseas property investments using public funds. The existence of this super-rich Umno-BN elite exposes the insincerity of the Prime Minister's promises of reform and change.

Indeed, during these hard times for the rakyat, the PM himself has spent lavishly on his daughter's recent wedding.

Declare assets like Selangor and Penang

Pakatan Rakyat's Selangor and Penang state governments have set an example for public accountability by declaring the assets of their State Excos. The BN must follow this unprecedented example.

Prime Minister Najib and the BN government must order the declaration of assets of all cabinet ministers,spouses and immediate family members. This assets declaration must be made public before parliament is dissolved for the 13th General Elections.

Meanwhile, the MACC must now investigate the sources of funds for the Porsche and luxury MPV used by Minister Nazri Aziz's son and make public their findings as a matter of public interest.

The federal government will call for a
tender for interested companies keen on taking over the troubled
National Feedlot Corporation (NFC) project. Agriculture and Agro-based Industries Minister Noh Omar said today that
the federal government was serious in ensuring that the project
continues as planned.

According to Bernama, Noh said that this plan has been endorsed by Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin.

"We have appointed a independent auditor because we are serious (to continue this project).

"We are also in the second process of calling for a tender for any
interested companies," he said during the ministerial winding up speech
during the debate on the motion of thanks for the royal address.

During his speech, Noh did not mention whether outgoing cabinet minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil's family will lose the project. He also did not mention if the federal government would seek an
reimbursement of the RM250 million soft loan to Shahrizat's family.

Troubles involving the NFC were first revealed in the Auditor-General Report 2010, which showed that the company had failed to meet targets set by the federal government in 2007. Following this, PKR produced documents which showed that the RM250
million soft loan was abused for several investments that were not
related to the cattle-rearing industry.

This includes the purchase of several plush condominium units in Kuala Lumpur and abroad, venturing into the restaurant and supermarket industry and a plot of prime land in Putrajaya. After months of denying any wrong doing, Shahrizat announced on March 11 that she would not be re-appointed as a senator when her term expires on April 8.

A day after her sudden announcement, her husband Mohamad Salleh Ismail was charged with two counts of criminal breach of trust and two counts of violating the Companies Act 1965.- malaysiakini

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